Country Music Icon Kenny Rogers Passes Away at 81

The vocalist dominated the country charts in the 1970s and 1980s.

Kenny Rogers. 

(Photo Courtesy: Pinterest)

American vocalist Kenny Rogers, who dominated the pop and country charts in the 1970s and 1980s and won three Grammys, has died. He was 81.

Rogers “passed away peacefully at home from natural causes under the care of hospice and surrounded by his family,” a representative for the singer said in a statement.

Due to the outbreak of coronavirus, the family is planning a small private service at this time with a public memorial schedules for a later date.

Rogers had announced a farewell tour in 2015 and was able to keep it going through December 2017. In April 2018, shortly before he was to spend a few months finishing the tour after a break, he called off the remaining dates (including an appearance at the Stagecoach Festival in California), because of “health challenges.”

“I didn’t want to take forever to retire,” Rogers had said in a statement in April 2018. “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed this opportunity to say farewell to the fans over the course of the past two years on ‘The Gambler’s Last Deal’ tour. I could never properly thank them for the encouragement and support they’ve given me throughout my career and the happiness I’ve experienced as a result of that.”

Kenny Rogers is best celebrated for tracks such as ‘The Gambler’, ‘Lady’, ‘Islands In The Stream’, ‘Lucille She Believes In Me’ and ‘Through the Years’.